One or more embodiment of the present invention relate to a character input device having functions of: setting a keyboard image for character input and an input character display area on a touch panel; selecting an input character in response to operation of touching the keyboard image (hereinafter referred to as “touch”) and to subsequent change in a touch position; and displaying the selected input character on the input character display area. One or more embodiment of the present invention also relate to an information processing device that performs information processing by using characters input with the character input device.
A small-size information processing device comprising a touch panel, such as a smartphone, sets a keyboard image and an input character display area on the touch panel for receiving character input. In the keyboard image, a plurality of character keys are arranged, and a plurality of characters are assigned to each of the character keys. A flick input method is adopted (see Patent Literatures 1 and 2). In this method, when a gesture of lightly sliding one's finger on a character key (flick gesture) is received, an input character is selected in accordance with the direction of the gesture.
A type of specific information processing executed in the flick input method is disclosed in Patent Literature 2. In this method, defining information (touch panel area information) is registered in advance for each character key. The defining information includes association between individual characters allocated to each character key and different regions on the touch panel. Upon detection of a touch gesture on the touch panel, the touch panel area information with respect to the touched key is compared with coordinates of the position where the finger is released from the panel, so that a flick direction is detected. A character associated with this flick direction is determined as an input character (see, for example, paragraphs 0032 to 0037 and FIGS. 2 to 5 in Patent Literature 2).
Patent Literature 3 discloses a technology as shown below. That is, a plurality of characters, which are associated with directional ranges different from each other, are assigned to each key. When a stylus pen is used, a vector representing a moving direction of the stylus pen is identified on the basis of both coordinates of a start point and an end point of a trace of the stylus pen, and the character associated with the directional range corresponding to the vector is selected (see, for example, paragraphs 0011 to 0017 and FIG. 8 in Patent Literature 3). When a flick gesture with a finger is made, a vector indicative of the flick direction may be identified in the same method as that in Patent Literature 3.
Patent Literature 1: Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2009-266236
Patent Literature 2: Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2013-81126
Patent Literature 3: Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2000-29630